United Kingdom law enforcement has charged a man in connection with dozens of harassing phone calls and a bomb threat to La Jolla Country Day School.
William John Cooper, 39, is accused of shutting down the campus in February when he phoned in the bomb threat, according to the San Diego County District Attorney’s office.
Officials say Cooper also sent a series of harassing emails and calls to the school, though details about their content have not been released.
Because the suspect was living in England when the bomb threat occurred, the San Diego DA and school police had to work with U.K. agencies to investigate the case.
San Diego law enforcement issued an arrest warrant for Cooper in May, and the U.K.’s Hampshire Constabulary took him into custody on June 26 at his Hampshire home.
During the arrest, officials seized his computers and his phone, according to the San Diego DA.
Cooper has since been charged with three counts of harassment and one count of violating a restraining order in connection with the bomb threat. Cooper posted bail and is awaiting his next court appearance in July 24 in the U.K.
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“This case demonstrates there will be consequences when school threats are made,” said San Diego DA Bonnie Dumanis. “You can run but you can’t hide — even outside the borders of the U.S.”
There are no plans to extradite Cooper back to San Diego unless he returns to U.S. soil, according to the DA. In that case, he would face separate prosecution in San Diego County.
La Jolla Country Day is a private, college preparatory school with about 1,200 students, ages 3 through grade 12.
